20th February 1472
Orkney and Shetland become part of Scotland
Shetland and Orkney had been Norwegian strongholds since the late 800s, although local Scottish influence became ever stronger from 1200 onwards.
When Margaret, daughter of King Christian I of Norway and Denmark, was married to James III of Scotland in 1468, Orkney and Shetland were pledged by the Norwegian king as security against the dowry he would pay the Scottish king but, the dowry never being paid, the islands were absorbed into Scotland proper in 1472.
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